Bleach:  Generation 2
by Sintysa
Summary: The captains, finding new prodigies, take 13 teenagers under their wings. Little do they know that a new Vasto Lorde has arisen, is creating a new hogyoku, and plans to free Aizen.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Death of a Fox, Rise of a Dragon

Mommy? Daddy? Why are you crying? I'm right here!"

A little girl, no older than the age of five, stood behind her weeping parents. She tried to look over their shoulders to see what they were hunched over, but she had no luck. She walked around them to see a carcass – _her_ carcass. There was a knife in her back.

The little girl's eyes widened with shock. What was going on? Why was her body _there_, when she was standing right _here?_ Her ears twitched. She felt the top of her head, and then looked into a nearby mirror. She had a pair of fox ears. And a long, bushy fox tail, both the same shade of gold as her hair.

"What's going on?" she rasped in shock.

"You died," came a voice.

The little girl whirled around. Before her stood another child, maybe a few years older than her, dressed in a black kimono. He had dark brown hair, and also had fox ears and a tail.

And the little boy carried a katana.

The girl's eyes widened again. "Did _you_ kill me?"

"Nope," said the boy. "I'm here to send you to Soul Society."

The little girl tilted her head in confusion. "What's that?… And why do I have fox ears and a tail?"

"The dad of your soul is the Great Fox," the little boy explained. "Your soul was born with those ears and that tail, just like me."

"But why am I…?"

"Dead? I don't know," the little boy replied simply, unsheathing his sword. "I'm only here to bring you to Soul Society."

She stepped back. "Wh-what are you gonna do to me?"

"Relax. This won't hurt."

* * *

><p>"So long, Tamotsu," said Tamotsu's father, a man with bright orange hair.<p>

Tamotsu's mother placed a loving hand on his shoulder. Her long red hair brushed against the top of Tamotsu's head.

"Don't worry," she said, "Auntie Rukia will take perfect care of you."

"Mommy…" Tamotsu begged. "Please don't go…"

His mother smiled. "It'll be alright. I promise. And we'll be sure to visit."

"Don't make promises, Orihime," Tamotsu's father warned.

Orihime smiled fondly. "Goodbye, Tamotsu. Have fun."

Tears poured out of Tamotsu's eyes as his parents left through the gate, and it was beginning to rain.

"Mommy… Daddy…"

A woman in a black kimono knelt beside Tamotsu. She had short black hair, and dark blue eyes. It was auntie Rukia.

"It's alright," Rukia said with a cordial smile. "Don't worry about them. From this day forth, you're a Kichuiki!"

Tamotsu turned slowly towards Rukia.

"Get away," he whispered.

"Leave him be," said a man with long black hair and deep blue eyes. He had tubes in some areas of his hair. "He needs time."

"But big brother–"

Tamotsu glared at this strange man. "GET AWAY!"

And with one step, they were twenty feet apart.

"Shunpo?" Rukia marveled.

Another step, and the distance increased. Tamotsu kept running, his bright orange hair blowing in the wind.

Little did he know, Tamotsu was moving at a captain's pace.

It was not long before Tamotsu disappeared into a nearby forest. Thunder boomed throughout Soul Society. He could see a few people searching desperately for him, since he was on a cliff viewing the Seireitei.

"So _this_ is the one with such a lovely reiatsu."

Tamotsu whirled around. Before him stood a hollow that was the size of a normal human or shinigami. It had a human-like posture and form – the only things inhuman about it were its shrill, insane voice, its purple and blue scales, and its white mask with red and black stripes.

The Vasto Lorde laughed malevolently, its mask showing a sadistic grin, its yellow eyes wide with a sort of mad delight. "I don't normally go for shinigami, but your reiatsu's just _so_ rich!"

Tamotsu froze. What was he supposed to do? His father had told him of the Vasto Lordes, whose power surpassed that of a captain's.

And it was walking closer and closer to him.

"N-no," he rasped with a shaking voice. "I don't want to die…"

And it was at that moment that something unexpected happened.

A wave of power rushed through little Tamotsu.

His skin turned silver, and was lit with silver flames.

His eyes turned black.

Black bands wrapped around his flaming arms, binding parts of the flames.

These black bands went all the way to his shoulder blades, where they were attached to purely black wings.

His fingertips turned into claws.

His hair grew and turned black.

What had he become?

A new sort of confidence arose within Tamotsu, even though the hollow was not disconcerted at all. Tamotsu had power now.

"Get. Away," he growled.

"Oh, I'm so scared," said the hollow, her voice heavy with sarcasm.

Tamotsu looked at the Vasto Lorde right in the eye. "Tch."

The silver flames erupted from his right arm. His movements were so quick, the hollow could not even see them. Next thing she knew, the hollow had a massive, bloody gash across her chest and her arm was severed. She flinched. A ball of red light known as a cero formed between the curved horns attached to her mask –

But before the hollow could make another move, Tamotsu ripped off her head. The hollow did not even have the time to cry out in pain. It simply turned into a heap of shadows and then disappeared.

The flames, wings, and black bands only disappeared on one side of his body. Tamotsu still had one wing, one flaming, silver arm with a band around it, and one eye remained purely black. The other eye had returned to its normal form, with a white and a pupil, but it was electric blue instead of brown. His hair was no longer an orange mess, but instead was wavy, pure black, and nearly reached Tamotsu's waist. His face had no silver or flames on it, but had a sort of pale glow to it anyway, along with the rest of his non-silver skin.

And suddenly, as if the situation could not become any more odd, a silver dragon appeared before Tamotsu. His scales emitted the same silver flame that was on Tamotsu's arm. The dragon had a snake-like body, with only two legs that acted as arms, black claws, a massive black mane, a purple goldstone on his forehead, and light purple eyes with black slits for pupils. His tail was covered with black spikes, and the same black band that was on Tamotsu's arm wrapped around his body. A pair of massive, purely black wings came from these bands, similar to Tamotsu's wings.

"Who are you?" Tamotsu asked more calmly than he expected.

"_I am your Zampakuto,"_ answered the dragon. _"Yo No Owari"_ (End of the World) _"is my name. Do you understand what just happened?"_

Tamotsu shook his head.

"_I was infused your body,"_ Yo No Owari explained. _"Your reiatsu and I are powerful enough to do that – it has only been done twice before, by your father and grandfather. However, unlike with your ancestors, your shinigami powers can remain. The price is that a part of me remains infused with your body at all times. It is both a curse and a blessing, for I am the most powerful Zampakuto in all of Soul Society."_

"What can you do?" inquired Tamotsu.

"_You shall know when you are ready,"_ said Yo No Owari. _"But for now, I bid you adieu."_

And at that, the silver dragon disappeared.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Army of Hollows

Tamotsu stood silently on a hilltop, watching over his fellow students enter the shinigami school as his hair, now in a high ponytail, swayed gently in the wind. It had been one hundred thirty years since he has crossed paths with the Vasto Lorde, and much had changed about him since then. He was contemplating it, when he heard the footsteps of a shinigami grow louder and louder.

"I know you're there," Tamotsu sighed.

"Who said I was trying to sneak up on you?" said a shinigami, not much older than Tamotsu. It was Shihoin Maria, child of Shihoin Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke. Most of her traits came from her mother, Yoruichi – the long, purple hair, the dark skin, the highly feminine figure… everything except for her green eyes, which were like her father's.

"In any case," Maria continued, "shouldn't you be going to school, like everyone else?"

"I am," said Tamotsu, a little defensively. "I just want the crowd to die down a little first."

"You know it won't, right?"

"It's worth trying."

Maria rolled her eyes. "Come on," she said, grabbing Tamotsu by the ponytail, "we're going."

"_Maria!_"

"What? Don't you wanna go to school? Or are you _scared?_"

"Of _course_ I'm not scared," Tamotsu growled. "But don't you think there's a better way to drag me?"

"Nope."

Everyone's heads turned at Tamotsu's entrance. After all, he _was_ the ever-so-handsome heir to the Kichuiki throne.

"Maria, do you think you could let go now?" pleaded Tamotsu.

"Oh, _fine._" She released Tamotsu from her grip. "Have fun, ok? Lighten up a little!"

"Tch."

Maria rolled her eyes. "You're no fun."

Out of the corner of his eye, Tamotsu noticed a herd of girls staring at him admiringly.

_They're probably waiting for Maria to leave,_ he thought.

And he was right. As soon as Maria was gone, he was surrounded by a swarm of girls, and even a few boys. They were all calling his name, asking him incoherent questions, begging him to date them.

However, out of nowhere, the sky was covered with grey clouds. A great wailing filled the Seireitei, mixed with a sort of vile laughter.

An army of hollows was approaching.

At such a horrifying sight, nearly all of the students ran for cover, for they were too inexperienced to do anything. Tamotsu could tell that at this rate, the captains would arrive with many lives lost already.

He glanced at his silver arm. There was only one thing Tamotsu could do.

Arm raised back, Tamotsu charged into the army, unsure of what would happen. He tore through four hollows at once with his claws and forced his way through the heap of hollows, unsure of what would happen.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Maria running at his heels.

Tamotsu leapt a distance he had forgotten he could do, and ripped off the head of a Gillan with ease. Maria was out of his range of vision now, and Tamotsu was all alone. But that did not faze him. He kept moving, leaving a trail of blood behind him, until suddenly, a hollow slightly smaller than a Gillan stood before Tamotsu. It was an Adjuchas.

"So _you're_ one of the amateurs ripping up my army, eh?" The Adjuchas laughed.

Tamotsu said nothing, but merely charged at the hollow, and left a massive gash up the Adjuchas' arm. Of course Tamotsu's power was nowhere near as great as the night he defeated the Vasto Lorde – only a fraction of Yo No Owari was infused with his body – but that would not stop him. Nothing would stop him.

The Adjuchas did not seem to be bothered by this scratch, since he fought back with ease. Tamotsu barely managed to jump out of the way of the hollow's pounding fist, which struck the ground and made it shake. But this left the Adjuchas wide open, even if it was for a second. Tamotsu rushed towards the hollow's chest and ripped him in two.

"Your work here is done, Tamotsu."

Tamotsu turned around. Before him there stood the man with tubes in his hair, Kichuiki Byakuya, current head of the Kichuiki house.

_The captains must have arrived,_ observed Tamotsu. The numbers of the hollow army had depleted dramatically.

"Your abilities shall not go unrecognized, however," continued Byakuya. "The same goes for the others that fought with you."

_The… others?_ wondered Tamotsu. _Maria and I were not alone?_

"Thank you, Master Byakuya."

Byakuya turned away without another word, and disappeared into the heap of hollows.

"You really _are_ like him," Maria said, laughing a little.

Tamotsu did not say a word, nor did he wonder when she arrived there.

"Now," continued Maria, "_you_ have to go to school. Everything's under control now."

"Right," Tamotsu said. He marched onwards, tearing up a few more hollows on his way.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Evaluation

It only took several minutes before the names of the thirteen heroes that fought off the hollow army were known. Tamotsu did not bother to learn them, however. He had no plans of associating with people of a different social class, regardless of their actions. The four noble houses tabooed such interactions.

Yet, when nine of the thirteen heroes were called to a specific room, Tamotsu could not help but wonder what was so special about these heroes, that they could be separated from the rest of the students. They were obviously quite powerful, to have taken on an entire army of hollows.

Tamotsu was the last to enter the heroes' separate room. Everyone stared as he opened the doors. Tamotsu stared back, taking note of each person in the room. There were nine students and four shinigami, each looking quite interesting. Amongst them was Maria, whom he strode across the room to. She was talking to another shinigami, a tall girl with wavy, neon pink hair that barely touched her shoulders. The shinigami kept a bandana tightly around her nose and mouth, had a band tied around her head, wore a long scarf, and wore fingerless gloves that reached the elbow on her sleeveless shinigami kimono.

Maria smiled cordially at Tamotsu when she finally noticed him. "Ah, Tamotsu! You know Hoshi, don't you? She's ranked third in my squad. I figured the two of you would get along since you're both so quiet."

Hoshi extended her hand to shake Tamotsu's. Tamotsu accepted the offer, and nodded politely.

"So _this_ is the famous Kichuiki Tamotsu, huh?"

Tamotsu glanced over his shoulder, but it seemed that no one spoke a word.

"Down here, idiot."

Turning around so he could look down, Tamotsu found a small boy, no older than the age of five, standing at his feet. He wore a sort of leather armor over his school uniform, including a belt that carried various weapons. He had a mess of dark green hair, which covered his right eye, and wore a pair of large goggles like a headband.

Tamotsu kept his blank expression on his face. "…And you would be?"

"Hayashi Hikaru!" spat the child. "You _really_ defeated a Vasto Lorde when you were my age?"

"Yes."

"Bull shit," he said.

"Excuse me," snarled Maria, "but who taught you _those_ manners?"

"I did."

"No wonder," Maria declared. "First off, you need to respect your elders. Second, _you_ need to respect a noble."

"You're Shihoin Maria, aren't you?"

"Yep."

"Heh. You look even more like a whore than I thought you were."

Maria turned bright red. "_How dare you call me a whore! _Chibi!"

"Who are _you _calling a chibi? Whore!"

"Who do you _think?_"

"Can we just calm down?" A shinigami the same age as Tamotsu approached the group. He had perfectly straight, dark brown hair that brushed against his shoulders, wore snakebites, and had fox ears and a fox tail. It was the third ranked member of the fourth squad, Kitsune Akio. Tamotsu had met him once before.

"Akio is right," pointed out Tamotsu. "There is no reason to fight."

"Yes there is!" Hikaru and Maria snapped simultaneously.

Suddenly, the doors swung open. It was the first squad captain, Yamamoto Genryusai. Immediately, Tamotsu and the four shinigami went to the ground and bowed before one of the two highest powers in Soul Society. The rest of the heroes followed, with Hikaru being the last to do so.

"Welcome, children," said captain Yamamoto. "Your abnormal skills have advanced you to a special sort of training. Each of you shall be assigned to train with one captain, shortly after we evaluate your skills. Now, I will separate you each into different groups to be assessed."

Within a few minutes, Tamotsu was placed in a group – the group that had both Maria _and_ Hikaru in it. To describe the situation, unfortunate would be an understatement.

But there was another girl, a student, in the group, one who looked similar to Akio. She had similar facial features, and also had fox ears and a long fox tail. But her eyes had hints of green and silver in their blue depths, unlike Akio's blue eyes. And her hair was a sort of wavy golden blonde. The cut would have looked boyish and silly on anyone else, but she looked quite attractive with it. The girl also wore glasses.

The group was taken to a clearing surrounded by walls. There stood a captain with short hair and two braids coming out from the back. It was the second squad captain, Sui-Feng.

"Your goal," instructed the captain, "is to snatch this cloth from my hand. If you use a fatal attack of draw too much blood from anyone, then the game is over and you lose. If half an hour passes and you cannot take the cloth, then you lose. If you take the cloth, then obviously, you win. Are you ready?"

"Heh," Hikaru laughed arrogantly. "Bring it on!"

Maria rolled her eyes.

"Alright then," said Sui-Feng, ignoring Hikaru's rudeness. "Let us begin!"

"Watch _this!_" said Hikaru to Maria. "_I'll_ be the one to grab it from her."

"Oh no you won't!"

And it was at that the two rivals charged at the captain.

"Um," said the fox girl quietly, "Shouldn't we work as a team?"

Tamotsu nodded. "Those two will figure that out soon enough."

Maria and Hikaru seemed to be racing neck-and-neck, but when they reached Sui-Feng, the two of them collided into each other and fell straight to the ground. And all Sui-Feng had to do was step backwards.

But Hikaru and Maria refused to give up. They looked up and glared at each other simultaneously, and then rose to their feet.

"Stay out of my way!" yelled Hikaru.

Maria growled, "_You_ were the one in _my _way!"

"Whore!"

"Chibi!"

At that, the rivals charged at Sui-Feng for the second time – and collided into each other yet again.

"Given up on competing yet?" Tamotsu asked.

"_Never!_" shouted Hikaru.

"Well, you should," pointed out Tamotsu. "You'll never get the cloth from Lady Sui-Feng like this. The point of this exercise is to work together."

"Work _together_?" Maria exclaimed. "With _him?_ I'd rather be devoured by a hollow."

Tamotsu sighed in frustration. "Maria, do you want to follow in your parents' footsteps or not?"

Silence.

"You have twenty minutes left," indicated Sui-Feng.

"_Fine,_" Maria sighed. "I'll do it."

"And you, Hikaru?"

"Sure. But I'll be a better teammate than that _whore!_"

"Chibi!"

"Focus!" snapped Tamotsu, who was reaching his breaking point. "Just… follow my lead." He looked over his shoulder at the fox girl. "That goes for you too."

The fox girl nodded obediently.

"Alright. Let's move." Tamotsu managed to use shunpo once more towards the captain. Sui-Feng merely leapt back, without using shunpo – much to Tamotsu's surprise.

_She must be going easy on us,_ Tamotsu concluded.

"Maria!" Tamotsu called, "Flank Lady Sui-Feng to the right. Hikaru! Go to the left."

"What do I do?" the fox girl inquired.

"Follow me!"

Tamotsu charged at Sui-Feng again, with Maria and Hikaru on either side. However, this time, Sui-Feng jumped nimbly into the air.

"I got it!" the fox girl cried. She jumped head-on at Sui-Feng, ears flat and eyes narrowed in determination. They exchanged blows in midair, until they forced each other back towards the ground.

Tamotsu nodded at the fox girl, indicating that she had done well.

Several formations were called, and much chasing and combat had occurred until the fox girl had managed to snatch the cloth out of Sui-Feng's hand – with only several seconds left.

"Good," Sui-Feng said. "You could have worked together more properly, but I'm still impressed. You are dismissed. Come back to here at sunrise to be evaluated again."

"…That's it?" asked the fox girl in surprise.

Hikaru grinned. "Heh. That was _easy!_"

"Don't get even more cocky than you already are," warned Maria with a frustrated sigh.

Tamotsu shrugged and left without questioning the caption, poised for what would come the next day.


End file.
